AUDI RS Q8 vs FORD EXPLORER

The AUDI RS Q8 (2021–2022, 2 model years) carries 8 NHTSA consumer complaints and 11 safety recalls, while the FORD EXPLORER (1977–2025, 43 model years) carries 42,132 complaints and 262 recalls. Severity indicators for the pair split as follows: 0 vs 2,324 crashes, 0 vs 975 fires, and 0 vs 282 reported fatalities.

Raw complaint counts favor whichever nameplate has fewer vehicles on the road, so the cleaner lens is components: which specific part families concentrate each model's filings? For the AUDI RS Q8, the leading complaint category is electrical system (4 filings), followed by unknown or other and tires:sidewall. For the FORD EXPLORER, it is steering (3601), ahead of unknown or other and power train. When the two vehicles cluster around the same component, the problem is likely a shared supplier or a shared federal standard under stress; when they diverge, each nameplate has its own defect signature independent of the other.

NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gives the AUDI RS Q8 an average 0/5 crash-test rating versus 4.3/5 for the FORD EXPLORER, aggregated across all model years with published scores. Use the side-by-side table below as your scorecard, but do not treat it as a verdict. Recall counts tell you how many defects the manufacturer has already been compelled to remedy; complaint counts tell you what owners are still flagging today; and safety ratings tell you how the vehicle performs in standardized barrier tests — three different lenses on the same underlying question. The "also compare" links at the bottom of this page let you triangulate against neighboring nameplates in each model's competitive set.